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<p>Totally agree. I think these are basics to send your hs kid off to college with, that’s for sure. You just never know. And you can get this stuff at Target, doesn’t need to be expensive.</p>
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<p>My D paid a lot of attention to how many students and others on campus were wearing school t-shirts and other spirit-wear. At one school, such a large percentage were wearing spirit-wear that it seemed as if they were filming a movie. But she didn’t like it when even the guide wasn’t wearing a school shirt.</p>
<p>I have to make a conscious effort NOT to judge a school by the folks they have answering the phones, working as the administrative assistant in admissions, etc. Some of these schools are in small towns and they don’t have the most educated or sophisticated workforce from which to draw.</p>
<p>Not all colleges require or even offer interviews. In fact, most do not. It’s the top-tier schools that do them, hence the amount of discussion about them here on CC.</p>
<p>If a college does interviews, it will say so on their admissions webpage. They will tell you if they are required (rarely) or optional. If they’re optional, do them. The website will tell you how to make an appointment. Some colleges also have alumni that do interviewing for them.</p>
<p>That’s true. At some schools, it felt like the receptionist was also an admissions professional in some capacity or at least took a lot of pride in representing the school and being ambassadors; at others, it was much more secretarial-like, I’m just the hired hand to answer the phone and check you in.</p>
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<p>Of course, when the actual admissions officers are absolutely unimpressive, that’s when I want to run for the hills. At the one school that my Son visited but did not apply, the 30 minute session with the admissions guy felt like 5 hours…thank goodness I was in the room because the admissions guy could not carry on a conversation (and of course, my 17 year old Son was no better.)</p>
<p>ok I got “the word”:</p>
<p>"Khakis and nice (polo or button down) shirt, for the most part. "</p>
<p>Makes sense to me.</p>
<p>Thanks a lot for your answers, missypie and monydad…I appreciate your help! 
Because we visited all the colleges while S1 was a junior, a few of them did say they wanted to wait to interview him as a senior. Because some colleges are several hours away, it makes sense then that we could probably, hopefully, do it more locally close to home.</p>
<p>Thanks also for asking your wife, monydad…S was prepared to wear a suit, which as missypie said may be overkill. Glad to know nice pants and polo or button down is sufficient for interview.</p>
<p>All this is nerve wracking, I’ll be so much more prepared for S2 in a few years! :)</p>
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<p>Just don’t get into a “one outfit for all” mode. Think about each interview separately and have him dress accordingly. (I don’t want to insult you, but many guys have this problem. My husband really truly wanted to pack the identical clothes for a trip to Rome as he did for the previous year’s trip to Disneyworld. To him, “vacation is vacation.” He would also be the “an interview is an interview” type, hence the warning to you.)</p>
<p>“If the college admissions office puts any weight on the fact that the parent wore shorts, etc. , then this college is probably not a good fit for the applicant because the child has been raised in a home where there is not a high value placed on outward appearance.”</p>
<p>I haven’t heard anybody claim the parents’ clothes will impact admission one way or another. I think it’s just a matter of deciding what is polite and respectful of the occasion. There are some people who think appearances and clothing are EVERYTHING (e.g., the Sex and the City crowd), and there are people who think they should mean NOTHING (e.g. SBdad). I’m guessing most people think the former are terminally superficial, the latter are naive, and the wise choice is somewhere in between.</p>
<p>Good advice missypie. Thankfully he is has a great wardrobe for a 17 year old because he has a mom who buys him some “nice” clothes other than t’s!
He has plenty of pants and shirts to choose from.
I was just trying to figure out when the interviews take place, but somehow it all works out. Hopefully if he gets into his ED choice, then all this is a moot point anyway and he’ll have only the one interview. If not, we’ll be prepared for additional interviews.</p>
<p>Picnic this weekend for the newbies…How casual? I don’t want to be too dressed up, yet not too casual.Daughter in Sweden unable to attend ,but she wants us to go to meet potential carpool buddies for her. It’s for Harvard, and I don’t want to make any mistakes for her, but I am excited she wants us to go .Also, the event is free ,but are we supposed to bring something ,like an appetizer anyway?</p>
<p>Btw, that’s funny about you trip to Disney world and then Rome! My H would do the same It’s hard being the only female with one H and two S’s…although some of my influence is rubbing off on all of them!</p>
<p>We have 4 kids,and my husband did most of the tours. It’s not about the parents so much,as long as the parent is reasonably dressed .My daughter got in to Harvard ,and made no extra effort to look nice, for the interview or anything related .</p>
<p>I don’t recall saying that clothes mean NOTHING.</p>
<p>The point I was trying to make was that if a person is brought up in an envrioment in which casual dress is the norm, then an enviroment which tends to the more formal might not be a good fit - and vice versa.</p>
<p>Whether we are talking about the impact on college admissions or the act of being polite, I think the college fit reasoning stands. If a college admissions officer is offended that you wore shorts to a college tour and that is what you child is comfortable with, then maybe that is not a great fit for your child.</p>
<p>I would impart to my child that the proper path is to do what they are comfortable with and what reflects their values, not to be wise and follow the middle road.</p>
<p>fauxmaven, you don’t need to bring anything. These events, while free, are usually paid for by the college (in the case of Harvard, I’m sure they’re paying for it). They’re usually at the home of a current student or an alumni, but the college will pay for catering.</p>
<p>I’d suggest wearing something like a sundress, or a pair of capris with a nice but casual top. Sort of dressy-casual, or business casual.</p>
<p>Thank you so much for responding! It’s going to be at a public park pavillion and it will be HOT…you kind of seconded what I planned.Do you have a current connection at Harvard?</p>
<p>My D has a friend who will be a freshman there, otherwise I have no connection to Harvard. But both my son’s LAC and my daughter’s college have these Welcome Freshmen open house/picnic type things every summer.</p>
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Frankly, any man spineless or self-conscious enough to refrain from wearing shorts due to considerations like this doesn’t deserve to be comfortable.</p>
<p>SBDad, would you advise your son dressed in shorts to a job interview or workplace because he is most comfortable in those clothes?</p>
<p>How do I identify American tourists American in a foreign country? By their shorts and t shirts (and obesity) even if they are in a major metropolitan city.</p>
<p>“I would impart to my child that the proper path is to do what they are comfortable with and what reflects their values”</p>
<p>I would hope that by the time my son was interviewing for professional positions that he would only be comfortable in such a setting if he were wearing clothing appropriate for the situation.</p>
<p>Every situation can be expanded to the ridiculous as it seems to have been here. The OP was talking about appropriate attire for accompanying a child to a college tour/interview which would give rise to a pretty wide range of acceptable choices. Obviously there are situations, such as professional interviews, which require a more narrow array of options.</p>
<p>Thanks for the advice on travel attire. I will make sure to keep the shorts at home the next time I travel to the continent and also pack my speedo so I fit in at the beach. :-)</p>